Don't own Naruto.

Last chapter *sniffles*

But seriously thanks so much to everyone who read this. It was my first fic so it means a lot. I have a longer author's note at the end of this chapter, so heads up :)

Two months later (Epilogue):

All four of them sat around the end of the rectangular kitchen table while eating the pizza they had just ordered. As of custom, Yahiko was stuffing down far more than the rest of them and everyone else was softly laughing as he inhaled the food like a vacuum.

Finally, they were sitting around the table as a family. After everything they had been through, this was the first meal they had shared where everything seemed over- but in the best way. It was as if everything was... at rest.

Yet somehow it was not quite complete. They were still missing something. And speaking of that something...

A knock sounded at the door, quickly followed by the front door creaking open without a greeting to come in. Firm footsteps clacked against the tiled floor until the intruder was at the end of the short hallway into the kitchen where Jiraiya and his three kids sat.

"Sorry I'm late," Tsunade sighed with a roll of her neck and a stretch. She walked over, at the same time taking off her jacket and adjusting her comfy gray shirt. She took a seat at the end of the table in between Jiraiya and Konan and immediately picked up a plate and pulled a piece of pizza from the box onto it, effectively causing a string of the cheese to follow.

"I'm shocked," Nagato mumbled with a smirk as he broke off a piece of his crust and brought it up to his mouth, "You're usually never late for family dinners."

Tsunade glared at the redheaded boy, who was still munching on the crust nonchalantly. "Did you just insinuate that I'm fat?! It's called being curvy, LOOK IT UP!" Tsunade brought a clenched fist up and prepared to lash out.

"No, no!" Jiraiya lunged over and brought Tsunade's hand down in an attempt at damage control. "That's not what Nagato meant at all, was it Nagato?"

Nagato, now fully comprehending just how pissed off Tsunade was, nodded his head enthusiastically with wide and frightened eyes. "Of course! Y-you're the most beautiful and young and thin person I know!" Nagato flinched and scooted away slightly in his seat, as if preparing for any physical harm.

Tsunade just cackled and took a bite out of her pizza. "Good boy; I've trained you well! Now, what board game are we playing after dinner?"

"Ooh! Let's play poker!"

Tsunade grinned and shot Nagato a proud grin as she rested both of her elbows on the kitchen table. "That's my boy. Learning well from the best, I can see."

Jiraiya sighed, pushing his chair out from the table and getting up to go over to the fridge. He pulled out a pitcher of lemonade and brought it back to the table and set it down. "Tsunade, I think you're over here too often now. These three innocent children are being corrupted by your evil ways. Nagato likes gambling now, and Konan's been getting more aggressive... and poker isn't even a board game you two!"

Tsunade poured herself a glass of the lemonade and let out a laugh, "It's not a bad thing that I'm here so often! These kids needed more of a masculine influence anyway. You're too maternal around them, Jiraiya."

Jiraiya gasped and pouted, turning away from the busty blonde who laughed at his sulking state.

Meanwhile, Yahiko squeezed Konan's hand under the table, and she eagerly squeezed it back. Just like always, his hand felt warm around hers and comforting as well. Despite the fact he was a total goofball and never really knew how to take things seriously, he ended up being pretty decent boyfriend material. He was polite and chivalrous, constantly putting her before himself; although, he had been like that long before they even started dating. As her fingers played with his, he looked over and smiled at her simple beauty. Sure, it was unconventional, but it was unique and he was proud to call it his. Unlike the other girls that hung out with Naruto and the rest, Konan was a lot more of a mysterious kind of beauty. While Sakura was cute, Ino was hot, Tenten was pretty, and Hinata was downright adorable; Konan was a lot more difficult to place. To Yahiko, it wasn't anything so easily describable. She had unique hair to say the least, captivating eyes, and a small smile that graced her lips and turned his insides to goo. To him, she was a goddess that had always and forever been there for him. She was his ray of hope that had come to him when he was seven and had nearly given up on the idea of happiness. They saved each other, and later Nagato saved them too. The three of them were family from day one.

Tearing his eyes away from her and reluctantly pulling his hand from where it was entwined with hers, he used his index finger to poke her kneecap. She turned to him with a raised eyebrow to question what he wanted.

"Psst... Konan," he whispered without the need to. Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Nagato were already in their own conversation while going on and on about gambling and Tsunade's effect on the children.

"Yeah?" she asked, smiling at his goofy nature despite herself.

"Is this what you always pictured? When you imagined having a family?"

Konan looked around the table as Tsunade pulled a bottle of wine out of her purse, Jiraiya yelled at her but was laughing as he did so, Nagato stuffed the rest of his piece of pizza in his mouth, and Yahiko looked over to her with a wide and childish grin. It was one of their typical 'dinner and board game' family nights that seemed to be happening a lot more lately, and things were sure to get loud and crazy. Most of the time it ended up not even being a board game but instead poker (Nagato and Tsunade's choice). Her family was being extremely loud and filling the open space of the kitchen and family room with their voices and laughs, but somehow it made the house feel more homey. All in all, they were a loud, boisterous, dysfunctional bunch who weren't even related in any way. However...

"No..." Konan said shaking her head with a smile, "It's better."

The next day at school the three former orphans were sitting at the lunch table with their usual crowd, laughing and eating like they always did. And they happened to be in the middle of one of their crazy stories, of course.

"Wait, wait... so you put sparkle hairspray and hairclips in his hair?!" Yahiko howled out in laughter and fell over until he was leaning on Kiba for support, who was also laughing like a maniac.

Tenten shrugged, "He wouldn't wake up and I was bored."

Everyone started laughing again and Naruto was punching the table from cackling so hard. Neji, however, was frowning to say the least. He touched his long, shiny hair and frowned in recollection of the event.

"I still haven't forgiven you," he spat evenly, turning his head away in defiance. Tenten simply laughed it off and playfully nudged him.

"It's not my fault you keep your hair so damn long! It can be tempting sometimes!"

"But were the sparkles and little braids necessary?"

"You looked adorable and you know it."

As the couple bickered, the rest watched on in amusement and continued picking at their lunches. It was nice; the peaceful happiness that seemed to be surrounding them all the time anymore. If they hadn't met Naruto that one day at the furniture store, Yahiko was pretty sure they'd end up being friends anyway. The twelve others were so out of place. They were the misfits that seemed to fit so perfectly with each other. And even though all their personalities differed to varied extents, they all seemed to make one perfect combination. And they had one thing in common, too: they cared deeply for their friends. So it didn't matter how it happened, Yahiko was just thrilled that he, Konan, and Nagato managed to meet Naruto's group.

Yahiko smiled and leaned over to whisper to Naruto.

"Hey, Naruto, I was just wondering if you've been okay lately? You know, 'cause of the Snake and all and your parents..."

Naruto straightened himself out and gave a thumbs up that was Rock Lee worthy, "Yahiko, don't worry about me! My parents' message ended up helping out in the end, right? If you hadn't read it you wouldn't have even gone to see Kabuto while looking for Orochimaru."

Yahiko tapped his chin thoughtfully, "Hey, I guess you're right."

Honestly the only thing that worried Yahiko about Naruto was the idea that maybe Naruto would have thought his parents had died for nothing. And the letter didn't have much to do with the Sound since Orochimaru had already given it up. But although it was years later, Naruto's parents did play a role in the resolution; and if that made Naruto happy then it made Yahiko happy.

Naruto nodded once and grinned, his eyes squinting in the action, "Not to mention that now I have something to remember them by. They were brave... and they'll always be in my heart."

Yahiko couldn't help but to let out a quick snort, "Did anyone ever tell you that you're a lot more mature than you make it seem?"

Sasuke butted into the conversation and turned his head over to look at Yahiko with a bored expression, "Why don't you say that next time he tries shoving his chop sticks up his nose while eating ramen?"

Naruto fumed and turned to shake his fist at Sasuke, "What do you mean 'try'? I succeeded and it was hilarious!"

Yahiko chuckled and turned back to the rest of his friends. They all seemed so... content.

"Hey, Yahiko, what's got you all smiley?" Kiba asked with a huff and an interested lean. Pressing against the table he stared at the orange-haired boy who just internally rolled his eyes in response.

"Nothing. I'm just happy." How could he not be? Not only was his life perfect, but it would continue to be perfect for the next couple of years; he was sure of it. He, Konan, and Nagato were all enrolling at Konoha University (and by pure luck so were the other three seniors in their little group) and would be around in town for their college life and most likely years to come. Yahiko knew that Jiraiya probably enrolled them there more so they could stay with their friends and keep living in the same house rather than for purely academic reasons, but Yahiko was almost relieved by this.

Ino gave off a disgusted look and glared at him, "I bet it's because you and Konan made out last period! You guys have serious PDA issues." Ino haughtily lifted her chin and looked the other way.

"Excuse me? You think we have issues with that?!" Konan shot back, "You and Shikamaru are literally on top of each other half the time! And it's usually just you making out with him while he's too lazy to move!"

Shikamaru shrugged and made a face as if to say 'she's got a point'. Ino, however, was not finished.

"Well excuuuse me! Not all of us can have the perfect cutesy-ass innocent relationship like Naruto and Hinata-"

"Hey!" Naruto yelped out in defense, covering his face with his instant ramen bowl and attempting to hide his blush. It was too late for Hinata, who had promptly passed out at the mention of her and Naruto's relationship and was now face-down against the table. "Look what you did, Ino! You made my girlfriend faint!"

Ino rolled her eyes. "Oh, how dare I, right? It's not like anyone else has been making her pass out for the past sixteen years!"

Naruto squinted for a moment, "I can't tell if that was sarcasm or not..."

At that, everyone audibly groaned.

"Besides," Naruto continued, "We're still at the early stage of our relationship, so don't expect and public displays of affection from us! We're keeping it simple and hands-off for now."

"As it should be," Neji threatened as he made a slitting motion with his finger across his neck as a warning. Naruto gulped and sweatdropped and immediately started stuffing his face with ramen to get the attention away from his girlfriend's over protective cousin.

"I'm friends with a bunch of idiots, aren't I?" Shikamaru sighed, shaking his head as Choji put a comforting hand on his friend's back. When Shikamaru closed his eyes, however, Choji stole one of his chips in record time and brought it to his lips to happily munch.

"Some things never change," Ino grinned, "right Kiba?"

Ino spun around to get a confirmation from her friend to see he was on his phone.

"Dammit Kiba! Stop sexting Temari at the lunch table!"

Kiba smirked with his fang-like teeth and continued his texting. "You couldn't force me to stop even if you tried, Blondie."

Ino growled, "If you text one more word, so help me God, I will tell Gaara you are virtually molesting his sister and see what he has to say about it!"

Immediately following Ino's threat, Kiba dropped his phone and his face flushed. Ah, yes, one does not wish to go up against Gaara.

"Kiba is scared of Ino I see," Shino said, adjusting his glasses, "Why is that? Because Kiba is a little bitch."

Kiba went to strangle the bug-obsessed freak but was held back by a certain bowl-cutted senior.

"Kiba, fighting is most unyouthful! And Shino, such words towards a comrade are not involved in friendships, now are they?"

"Lee, don't be a hero," Tenten sighed, tugging on Lee's green long sleeved shirt, "Sometimes friends butt heads. It happens."

Lee pouted and raised an arguing finger, "But... but... youth..." He let a lone tear fall and dropped his head to the table in a silent sob (a bit more on the melodramatic side).

"Yes, Lee. Youth..." Nagato grinned, not wanting the poor kid to feel down. He couldn't help it, Lee was too damn adorable. And it wasn't like Sakura was going to be giving Lee the attention he wanted from her anytime soon, so he may as well.

Just as Lee's eyes brightened and he was about to respond to Nagato, a voice interrupted and caused their entire lunch table to fall silent.

"YAHIKO!"

Everyone turned their heads to see Deidara dashing over to their table followed by a bored-looking-as-always Sasori who was trailing behind with his hands in his pockets.

"Um, yes?" Yahiko smiled in a greeting. But on the inside he was wondering what the hell made Deidara so flustered and sweaty as he ran up to them. It wasn't like the blond to be so buddy-buddy with Yahiko anyway.

"The Chief of Police, you know, Tsunade... she's giving the Akatsuki an award for their efforts over the past few months. I wanted to know if you were coming to accept the award."

Yahiko craned his head up more to look at the art-obsessed freak. He wanted him to accept the award?

"Deidara, it was you and Sasori who've been practically heading the Akatsuki the past few months, not me. If anyone should accept the award it's the leader of the Akatsuki. And that's you two now."

Deidara shook his head fervently, which caused his blond ponytail to swish with the movement, "Nuh uh. You started all of this so you deserve to accept the award. As the leader of our organization, hm."

Yahiko smiled. Oh, yes; after confronting the Snake and realizing he didn't need the Akatsuki as an attention-drawer anymore, he decided it would be best to keep the idea of their group alive. The people who were in it were given the option to either drop it or stay, and some of them did stay to help out. The Akatsuki then became an organization that helped towards ridding Konoha of crime and keeping it safe from the Sound, a gang that was quickly dissipating from around the world, thankfully. After Yahiko decided he wanted to focus more on his friends and family than the Akatsuki, he quickly passed the torch on to Deidara and Sasori. And they, in Yahiko's opinion, were doing a mighty fine job.

"No way. It's your organization now. I wouldn't want it any other way."

Sasori smirked, "I'm glad you've made your peace with leaving us in charge, because we let someone in that you probably wouldn't have."

Yahiko's lips turned down in curiosity. "And who would that be?" He was almost afraid to ask

Deidara sighed, "Sasori, my man, I thought we agreed to wait until a good time to tell him, hm."

Sasori shrugged again; it wasn't really common for him to look like he cared about much. "It's as good a time as any."

"Who?" Yahiko asked, never one to be able to hold curiosity for too long.

Deidara laughed awkwardly and rubbed the back of his neck, "Uh, well, it's a funny story-"

"Hoshigaki Kisame."

Everyone at the table choked on their food and Sakura even did a spit take all over Sasuke.

"WHAT?" Yahiko threw his hands up in panic, "He was our enemy!"

Sasori shrugged, "People change. He's more than proven that he's capable of great things."

Yahiko thought back to when he spoke with Kisame in class that one day. It was true, he seemed to care more about things than he let on, and he wasn't in it to be necessarily evil. It was really just what he felt was right at the time. And if Sasori and Deidara trusted him enough to let him into the Akatsuki...

"Fine," Yahiko sighed and relented, "But who else is part of the Akatsuki now?"

Deidara bit in lip as he tried to remember. He counted off on his fingers as he listed them off out loud, "Well for the core members...there's me, my man Sasori, Kisame, a guy named Zetsu, some kid Kakuzu, and even Hidan. Don't ask me... he said he felt it was best in the name of Jashin to join and help Konoha."

Nagato raised an inquisitive eyebrow, remembering Hidan. He was in his Philosophy of Religion class and was pretty much a pain in the ass. But hey, if he wanted to help out Kohoha then he could go right ahead and do so.

"Oh!" Deidara added as an afterthought, "Sasuke," he looked over at the dark-haired frowning teen, effectively grabbing his attention, "your brother works with us a lot too. Ever since he was promoted as an officer he's been dividing his time between teaching here at the school and working with our organization. He's a really good man, dude."

Sasuke smirked, clearly proud of Itachi even if he wouldn't admit it, "You think I don't know that?"

Everyone laughed at Sasuke's usually dormant sense of humor. Hey, even an Uchiha's gotta be happy at times.

"Speaking of Itachi," Nagato mumbled, more to himself than everyone else, "he asked me to meet up with him in his classroom before this period is over. He said it was important."

Nagato sat in his dazed state as he stared at Itachi. There was no way, just no way that what Itachi just said was true.

"Can-can you repeat yourself, please? I don't think I heard you correctly."

Itachi smiled. Somehow for Sasuke's older brother, this man seemed so pleasant and friendly all the time. Itachi folded his hands neatly on his desk and did as Nagato asked, repeating what he had just said.

"They chose you. Your essay won the contest between the five great countries. You get to read it live on a world-wide broadcast to persuade the five great countries to strive for peace and hospitality towards one another."

"No way," Nagato choked on the breath he was trying to take. It was true, he and Itachi had been working so hard on that essay since nearly September. Even with all of that effort, Nagato never actually pictured himself winning. And this meant he was going to give his speech to the entire world; it was all just too much. But there was no way Itachi would be cruel enough to lie about it.

"Yes. I'm very proud to call you my pupil, Nagato. I'm sure Jiraiya will be pleased with the news as well."

Nagato perked up, "Yeah, he definitely will."

Itachi continued smiling as he wheeled his desk chair back and leaned against the back of the chair with his hands still folded, somehow managing to look relaxed and formal at the same time. "I'm glad you're excited. Because you're going to be giving the speech this weekend in front of town hall."

Nagato's eyes widened, "I didn't sign up for this!" The redheaded boy slammed his head against the desk he was sitting at and groaned into it. Despite always seeming more reserved, Itachi couldn't help but find Nagato's moment of defeat hilarious.

Itachi could only smirk, "I look forward to seeing you there."

"This isn't really a good heads-up. I would have preferred you told me all this a couple of weeks ago maybe. I mean, I barely remember what I wrote!"

"Don't be so dramatic, Nagato. You just finished it a month ago. It took the committee a while to choose which essay they wanted to pick. You're lucky you're even being given a few days to prepare."

"Soooo lucky, aren't I?"

The few days left until the weekend passed far too quickly for anyone's comfort (mostly Nagato), and now Nagato stood outside town hall next to Yahiko and Konan as he shook his limbs in attempt to remove the anxious feeling that was driven deep into his bones.

"This is all happening way too fast..." Nagato whimpered, dropping his head in anxiousness and fear.

"Calm down," Yahiko waved him off and spoke in a calm and relaxed voice, "You'll be fine! But just in case you want to feel more nervous, just remember that not only is your girlfriend right over there," Yahiko pointed to Yugito who was sitting in the front row of the mass crowd of people lined up in front of the podium in front of town hall, "but the entire world is watching your every action and word. If you screw up, it's only going to be aired to the entire world!"

Nagato hunched forward and held back puke.

"See," Yahiko giggled like a little girl, "Nothing to worry about.

"Yahiko!" Konan reprimanded, shooting him a warning glare. He only shrugged and grinned. Some things never change, and Yahiko topped that list.

"Nagato," Itachi walked up, holding a piece of paper which he handed to the nervous-looking teenager, "Five minutes. You may want to go up there and set up. Remember, don't be nervous."

"Easy for you to say," Nagato mumbled as he snatched the piece of paper that had his speech typed up on it and walked towards the podium. He had to walk up steps onto a platform that overlooked the enormous crowd before him. Behind the podium, at least he felt like there was some distance between the Konoha citizens and himself, but he was still nervous as hell. The fact that the tons of camera equipment was set up by the front row didn't help either; since it only reminded him that most people in the five great countries and even the world were going to be listening to him give this speech.

But there was no turning back now.

In the front row, next to Yugito he saw Yahiko and Konan take their seats. Beside them sat Naruto and the rest of his group (even Sai, wow), and even Jiraiya and Iruka. Talking to Jiraiya was some silver-haired guy and someone who looked like Rock Lee if he were to evolve or something.

"One minute," Itachi whispered from beside Nagato. He jumped, not even realizing that the older Uchiha had snuck up on him.

Nagato gulped, "G-got it."

He stared out into the crowd once again. He couldn't help but be amazed. Less than one year ago he was just some orphan without a home. He didn't have a real place in this world, and all he had was Yahiko and Konan. But somehow the three of them made their place in Konoha, and found their place in this world.

"You're live."

With Itachi's words, Nagato looked startled, choking on his own saliva but managing to hide it all and force a calm smile. Itachi backed up and took a seat next to Tsunade and Shizune at the back of the platform.

Nagato scanned the eager faces again, willing himself to calm down. It was now or never.

"Hello to everyone out there who's hearing this," Nagato started off, sounding unsure of himself, "You could be from Kiri, Iwa, Kumo, Suna, or Konoha. You could be in the country of Water, Earth, Lightning, Wind, or Fire. It doesn't matter right now, however, because we're all listening in hopes of the same message," Nagato took a deep breath. Huh, it was just like talking to a wall. In fact, this wasn't hard at all. "It doesn't make sense to continuously disagree and argue, because in the end, we all just want peace," He grinned, this was easier than he thought it would be. How can people be afraid of public speaking when it was this empowering? "And before you ask me if I have a right to say these things to you, please remember Ame. In the Rain Country, the capital was demolished, leaving three survivors. These survivors were my two best friends and me. And for many, many years we were on our own as we lived home to home and orphanage to orphanage, until one day someone we once knew took us in as his children with open arms. This man was the same policeman who had saved us when we were younger and brought us to the Fire Country. If it weren't for him, we could have very well ended up dead. But, as you all very well may be asking yourselves, this means that if I am from Ame and we were taken to Konoha, that we were taken to the land of the very people that were mostly involved with the gang war that caused the downfall of my hometown. In fact, the people who killed my parents right before my eyes were from Konoha," Nagato heard a collective gasp in the crowd, but ignored it and plowed on, "But that doesn't matter." He took a pause, relishing in their confusion, "It doesn't matter because this one act never filled me with hate. Things happen that often cause hate to form in one's heart, usually hate towards one specific group of people. But why should I fill myself with hate when it was all just a mistake? My two best friends saved me, and I am forever in their debt. With them, I found light even in the darkest of days. Just like most people out there, I found a reason to live. Every single one of you listening to this must in some way feel that they have a reason to live; we all share that! So let us use this similarity to better understand each other! Only by understanding each other's pain and crying beside them can we move forward to a future where we understand one another. But we've already done this. The Sound, as horrible a thing as it was, brought one good thing to the world. We now understand pain, and shared a common pain. But together, as one world, we can pull past this. I may have been born in Ame, but it was here in Konoha I found my first home. With people I was supposed to feel malice towards, with people I was supposed to hate. But now I have friends that support me, and I have a family that loves me. And if you're still thinking that the five great nations- and every other nation- can't get along, then let me tell you this: a few months ago I met three wonderful people from Suna. And despite the fact they didn't really know about me or Konoha, they fit in with my friends right away and we had the best time ever. And they were the three children of the Chief of Police in Suna. People aren't different because of their birthplace, that's a commonality that humanity has inflicted upon itself. A home isn't where you were born and raised; it's where you feel comfortable and loved. It's where you want to spend your time and it's a place you wish to protect. Not only do I consider both Ame and Konoha my home, but I consider this world my home, a home we all share. I started off with a wish for revenge and it changed into a wish to protect this world. Just like my two friends and I changed throughout our past year in Konoha, you can all change the world in the future. It isn't the world that morphs who we are but rather our decisions that can morph the course of history and the future. These can be the changes you make, because those were the changes of us."

Nagato finished with a deep breath and was met by silence. At first, he panicked and thought that it had all been a disaster. But after a few painfully long moments of complete silence, everyone burst out into a round of applause and cheers. All of the confidence he had just been feeling withered away and left him blushing like a school girl.

"Thank you," he choked out shyly into the microphone before darting backwards. Tsunade let out a laugh and approached the microphone to give her own words. As she was doing so, Nagato wasted no time in heading down the platform and towards his friends.

Yahiko patted a seat next to him, "Saved you a seat, rock star."

Nagato rolled his eyes and laughed, "Thanks."

"No problem, Smallfry."

"That was beautiful, Nagato," Konan smiled, holding back the happy tears that threatened to spill from her eyes. Yugito lunged over and hugged Nagato, immediately pushing him off and frowning.

"You never get wordy and sappy with me like you just did!"

Nagato sighed, "Everyone's a critic."

"Women, am I right?" Yahiko nudged his friend with his elbow and Nagato chuckled and nodded in agreement.

"You two may have changed in some ways, but on the inside you're the same two idiots I met when I was seven."

Yahiko grinned, looking between his two friends and settling in his seat. As Tsunade finished saying whatever she needed to say into the microphone and everyone started applauding, he looked over at his guardian and silently thanked Jiraiya. In the end, things seemed to work out perfectly. He knew, deep in his heart, that his parents were looking down at him and smiling. He, Konan, and Nagato all did their part for the world and then some. He knew that they had to be proud.

So Yahiko put an arm around both Nagato and Konan and pulled them in tightly against him, and grinned at them and also Jiraiya who was looking over with an amused smile.

"You know, you guys are the best family I could ever ask for."

Jiraiya ruffled his hair and smirked, "You three aren't so bad yourselves."

Wow, it's finally over. I have to say that when I first started this I didn't imagine it ending up the way it did. I mean I always had the speech planned (maybe you remember it from the first few chapters when Itachi and Nagato were talking about it a few times), but I kind of forgot to mention it as much as I should have (oopsie on my part).

And thanks to the Guest reviewer who suggested that I use the canon Akatsuki in the end. I was actually planning on using the first Akatsuki from before Yahiko ever died in canon, but I liked the idea of a canon Akatsuki better (the Akatsuki we all know and love). So thanks so much for your suggestion, I think it works well! :)

And a serious thanks to the reviewers (literally every single one since day one) :

Wilhelm Wigworthy, SapphireZz02 (Dude you totally predicted most of the story XD), Leafshadow9408, AnimeXLovers, lereviewer, nak-chrome, A Frozen Shadow, Dream-Wishes-Hopes, Alicia, and, of course, any anonymous reviewers.

Now commence operation: spinoff-ish fic to this one. I already have the first two chapters and I'm going to post it up within the week, so keep an eye out for it if you're interested in the Nejiten pairing at all. (Because it will never die in my heart)

Boom first fic ever is complete. PS. Ame Orphans rock!